Monochloroacetic acid and its derivatives are important intermediates in industrial organic synthesis. They are used for the preparation of adhesives, plant protection agents and pharmaceutical products. The preparation of monochloroacetic acid by chlorinating acetic acid always involves the formation of dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid. As well as catalytic hydrogenation of dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid to give monochloroacetic acid, electrochemical dehalogenation is also available for the removal of dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid from the mixture of products (EP-B 0,241,685).
The last-mentioned dehalogenation is carried out using graphite cathodes in the presence of small amounts of metal salts having a hydrogen overvoltage of at least 0.4 volts (at a current density of 4000 amps/m.sup.2), and is preferably carried out in aqueous acid electrolytes.
This process has a high selectivity of conversion, since, at low concentrations of the dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid to be partially dehalogenated, thermodynamically favored reduction of protons to hydrogen takes place at the cathode. Although an undesirable dehalogenation of the monochloroacetic acid is avoided in this manner, the dichloroacetic acid and the trichloroacetic acid are dehalogenated at only a poor current efficiency. This process is not suitable for dehalogenation down to a very low concentration level of dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid, since an increasingly larger fraction of the electrical charge is consumed for the reduction of protons to hydrogen. Dehalogenation to give monochloroacetic acid in an economical manner at a low concentration of dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid has, therefore, hitherto only been possible to an inadequate extent (comparison example).
It was, therefore, an object to dehalogenate dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid selectively; that is to say not completely--at a very high degree of conversion.
It is known then from EP-A 0,280,120 that complete dechlorination of 3,3-dichloro-2-fluoroacrylic acid takes place in the presence of protonated dimethylaniline, particularly if the dechlorination is carried out batchwise.
Nekrasov et al. have investigated the dehalogenation of trichloroacetic acid and monochloroacetic acid in the presence of a tetramethylammonium or tetraethylammonium salt in an aprotic electrolyte (Nekrasov et al., Elektrokhimiya 1988, 24, 560-563). The effects observed by them do not, however, indicate in any way that ammonium salts would be able to inhibit the abovementioned undesirable reduction of protons to hydrogen in an aqueous electrolyte.
It has now been found, surprisingly, that it is possible to dehalogenate dichloroacetic and trichloroacetic acid to give monochloroacetic acid at a very high degree of conversion continuously or discontinuously in divided electrolytic cells, if electrolysis is carried out in aqueous solutions in which quaternary ammonium and/or phosphonium salts are dissolved, as well as metal salts having a hydrogen overvoltage of at least 0.4 volt (at a current density of 4000 A/m.sup.2).